Developing and validating a hand hygiene skills intervention for Primary Health Care nurses
- 1Department of Nursing, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Walter Sisulu University, Mthatha, South Africa
- 2Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa
Abstract
Background: Hand hygiene is a cornerstone of infection prevention and control in Primary Health Care (PHC) settings. Despite established guidelines, compliance among PHC nurses in South Africa remains suboptimal. Practical, context-specific educational strategies are needed to strengthen routine practice. This study aimed to develop and validate a skills-based hand hygiene educational intervention suitable for PHC nurses.
Methods: A development-and-validation study design was used. A hand hygiene skills-based educational intervention was developed using evidence, infection prevention and control guidelines and findings from prior exploratory work. The intervention was validated using a three-round Delphi technique with 12 experts in infection prevention and control, healthcare education, public health and quality improvement. Consensus was used to assess the relevance, feasibility and educational suitability.
Results: Consensus was achieved across all Delphi rounds on the validity and appropriateness of the intervention for PHC settings. All five components of the skills-based intervention achieved mean importance and effectiveness ratings of ≥ 4.0 on a five-point Likert scale. Six themes emerged: interactive learning; clinical contextualisation; immediate feedback; regular reinforcement; institutional culture and leadership support; and sustainability.
Conclusion: The study produced an expert-validated hand hygiene intervention for PHC nurses. The intervention provides a practical educational framework that for integration into existing infection prevention and control programmes in PHC clinics.
Contribution: Further research is required to evaluate its impact on hand hygiene practice and patient outcomes.
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BibTeX
@article{dlamini2026developing,
title = {{Developing and validating a hand hygiene skills intervention for Primary Health Care nurses}},
author = {Nokwazi I. Dlamini and Thembelihle S.P. Ngxongo and Nellie Naranjee and Jeffrey M. Hadebe},
journal = {South African Family Practice},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.4102/safp.v68i1.6364},
url = {https://doi.org/10.4102/safp.v68i1.6364},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Developing and validating a hand hygiene skills intervention for Primary Health Care nurses
AU - Nokwazi I. Dlamini
AU - Thembelihle S.P. Ngxongo
AU - Nellie Naranjee
AU - Jeffrey M. Hadebe
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/06
JO - South African Family Practice
DO - 10.4102/safp.v68i1.6364
UR - https://doi.org/10.4102/safp.v68i1.6364
AB - Background: Hand hygiene is a cornerstone of infection prevention and control in Primary Health Care (PHC) settings. Despite established guidelines, compliance among PHC nurses in South Africa remains suboptimal. Practical, context-specific educational strategies are needed to strengthen routine practice. This study aimed to develop and validate a skills-based hand hygiene educational intervention suitable for PHC nurses. Methods: A development-and-validation study design was used. A hand hygiene skills-based educational intervention was developed using evidence, infection prevention and control guidelines and findings from prior exploratory work. The intervention was validated using a three-round Delphi technique with 12 experts in infection prevention and control, healthcare education, public health and quality improvement. Consensus was used to assess the relevance, feasibility and educational suitability. Results: Consensus was achieved across all Delphi rounds on the validity and appropriateness of the intervention for PHC settings. All five components of the skills-based intervention achieved mean importance and effectiveness ratings of ≥ 4.0 on a five-point Likert scale. Six themes emerged: interactive learning; clinical contextualisation; immediate feedback; regular reinforcement; institutional culture and leadership support; and sustainability. Conclusion: The study produced an expert-validated hand hygiene intervention for PHC nurses. The intervention provides a practical educational framework that for integration into existing infection prevention and control programmes in PHC clinics. Contribution: Further research is required to evaluate its impact on hand hygiene practice and patient outcomes.
SN - 2078-6190
SN - 2078-6204
ER -